HAPPY 90TH, SON OF KONG

I don't give a hoot what anyone says. Son of Kong is a great sequel, and its 90th anniversary (on Dec 22) is one to commemorate. 

Though rushed into production to capitalize on its predecessor's blockbuster status, Son of Kong, directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack, produced by Merian C. Cooper, scripted by Ruth Rose and scored by Max Steiner, plays like the initial chapter, but with humor and tenderness tweaking the peril. 

Like King Kong, Son of ... also holds a great cast, with Robert Armstrong returning as the guilt-ridden, Carl Denham, along with Frank Reicher as Captain Englehorn, Victor Wong as Charlie and Noble Johnson as Skull Island's Chief. Helen Mack plays Denham's girlfriend-to-be, Hilda (aka "Kid," who does a dandy job singing the catchy "Runaway Blues"), with Clarence Wilson as her ill-fated dad, Steve Clemente as the Witch Doctor, Henry Tenbrook as Tommy, Lee Kohlmar as Mickey, Ed Brady as Red and John Marston as the dastardly Nils Helstrom, whose sights are set on an island treasure.   

The stop-motion animation by Willis O'Brien and Buzz Gibson brims of nuance and character, more than holding its own with the original, even if the same ferocity is absent. Even so, the salty-furred Little Kong's fight sequences would make his dad proud. (My personal favorite occurs when he wrestles a cave bear.) 

I believe what makes Son of ... so endearing is its moral core, which demonstrates that selflessness and sacrifice are paramount paths to survival. In this respect, Son of ... twists the original's premise with a stroke of heartfelt redemption, leaving one sad yet satisfied by the story's end. 

(Re)watch Son of ... this December to (re)experience the warmth, pathos and power of a sequel that, though smaller in scope, delivers a huge punch.